Big Eyes (2014) Review

Plot Synopsis: (via Wikipedia)The film focuses on American artist Margaret Keane (Adams), whose work was fraudulently claimed in the 1950s and 1960s by her then-husband, Walter Keane (Waltz), and their heated divorce trial after Margaret accused Walter of stealing credit for her paintings.

My Opinion:

Tim Burton. Oh Tim Burton. Remember when you made stuff like Edward Scissorhands? Remember how awesome that movie was?! What the hell happened?

Okay, we all know how disappointing Tim Burton’s films have become in recent years. Is Big Eyes a return to Burton’s glory days? Unfortunately not. But at least it’s better than things like Charlie & The Chocolate Factory and Alice In Wonderland. Burton plays it safe with Big Eyes – he just tells an interesting story in a straightforward way (except for a brief bit that looks like Soundgarden’s Black Hole Sun video but that was to be expected, really, based on the look of Margaret Keane’s “big eye” paintings). It’s not exactly going to be anyone’s all-time favorite movie as it doesn’t have the originality or magic of things like Edward Scissorhands or The Nightmare Before Christmas but it’s a decent enough look at an artist’s real life story.

I feel like I say this with every “true story” movie but I knew nothing about the story of Margaret Keane beforehand. It’s a fascinating story and a reminder of how glad I am to not have been a woman living in the 1950s or 60s. Amy Adams does a good job & is the highlight of the film. I’d heard some negative things about Christoph Waltz in this and was hoping they weren’t true as I thought he was amazing in Django Unchained. Maybe he’s only at his best when working with Tarantino? Maybe the role in Big Eyes just wasn’t quite right for him? Maybe it’s just because the character of Walter Keane is SUCH an unlikable prick and watching him control his wife and take credit for her work is uncomfortable to watch? I don’t know but, unfortunately, I didn’t like Christoph Waltz in this role.

Honestly, I can’t think of anything else to say about this movie. Other than: Is it me, or does Amy Adams have a hairy face? In a couple scenes where the light was shining on her chin, she seemed to have tiny whiskers. Where am I going with this review?? Sorry! I have a massive headache & my mind is elsewhere. I’ve decided no one actually reads these reviews anyway, right? I think people just scroll to the rating. 😉 Meh. This movie is fine. The story is interesting. I’ll never watch it again. Those paintings are weird.

My Rating: 6.5/10

I haven’t done one of these in ages – Here’s a Tim Burton Haiku:

Edward Scissorhands!
Then Willy Wonka remake?
Why, Tim Burton, Why?!

I was totally distracted while writing this review so I texted my hubby my shitty Tim Burton haiku. He went a little haiku crazy & texted these back to me. Yeah, these are the important kinds of conversations we have with each other… 😉

Beetlejuice PeeWee
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Need more like these, Tim

Yeah… It did appeal to me as I found the story interesting & I like the two main stars. Very disappointing that I didn’t like Waltz. I wouldn’t say it’s not worth watching but it’s not one you have to go to the cinema to see.

In some ways I don’t think it’s fair to review a film based on one’s expectations of a particular director. To be blunt, if you wish Tim Burton would make a movie just like Edward Scissorhands, he did: it’s called “Edward Scissorhands.” A similar example is Scorsese’s “Shutter Island”—from what I remember, a mediocre Scorsese film and a slightly better-than-average psychological thriller—but I don’t remember people being all “why can’t he make another Goodfellas”.

I thought Big Eyes was okay as a film. It unfortunately is equivalent to the trailer which tells the whole story more succinctly, so I was just kind of waiting for the plot points to happen. Burton aside, it’s just okay. Fortunately, the story is bizarre and entertaining … perhaps it would be better thought of as a document of being a woman in the 1960s (something it seems to do better than its ostensible reason for being) since it’s so painful to watch Margaret’s experience … and her daughter’s keen (*sigh* Keane?) observation.

I really can’t forgive him after Charlie & The Chocolate Factory. It damaged me & now I write angry reviews because of it! Lol 😉 I’d also have preferred another Goodfellas to Shutter Island. I’d almost prefer another Charlie & The Chocolate Factory to Shutter Island. I also wish Titanic had been more like Aliens! That would have been awesome. 😉 But on a serious note, I WAS a little bitchy in my review of this. Even though Burton’s films haven’t been so good in recent years, I still have high expectations. Big Eyes is certainly not a BAD film… I do think a documentary about this story could have been better as I found the story very interesting. And Amy Adams did a good job. It was just a little… “Blah”. Yes, especially when compared to Burton’s best work. 🙂

LOL. Those haikus are WINNING. This sounds pretty much like I expected it to be. Shame it couldn’t be better. I’d really like to see Burton do well again, too. As for this hairy Amy Adams business…now I feel like I should watch Big Eyes just to see this…hahaha.

Too funny and I agree what the hell happened to Burton?! This movie looks boring and since I usually agree with you I totally don’t care to see this even more now. Black hole sun, black hole sun… now that’s in my head.

Burton has definitely gone odd. I love his old work, I really do. The last few years just seem so… generic. Which is a pity. Plus he royally screwed up HIS OWN CREATION when he messed with Frankenweenie. Meh. I would like to see this though, purely because it is Burton, but primarily for Waltz. Also, Danny Huston? Not bad. One drawback? I truly admit I really don’t like Amy Adams

I know! I LOVE Burton’s old stuff. What the hell happened?? 😦 Frankenweenie! What a disappointment. I was so looking forward to that as I love the short. I don’t think you’ll like Big Eyes either if you don’t like Adams. It really is HER movie… I love Waltz but he felt quite odd & out of place in it.

I know I’m late to the party but I only recently found this little gem of a film. Amy Adams is excellent in the role; Waltz is an overcooked caricature of all his former evil personas; and its a fascinating story too. Sometimes we just expect too much. This achieves what a good bio-pic should do: tell an interesting story that people want to hear and produce it with a strong cast. Tick the boxes.

That’s okay – I love still getting comments on older reviews! 🙂 I agree that it’s a solid film – I suppose the director seems odd for it as it’s very different for a Burton film so people (and me too, probably) may have been expecting something slightly different than this. But I adore Amy Adams and she was good as always. It’s a shame that Waltz was over the top and kind of ruined things. But agreed that the story is fascinating & one I knew nothing about whatsoever beforehand so I’m glad I saw the movie. 🙂